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Conyngham Borough Authority member walks out on meeting

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Conyngham Borough Authority's special meeting took an unusual turn Tuesday afternoon when a board member walked out, leaving the board without a quorum.

Four board members - Chairman Ken Temborski, Deb Santangelo, Leonard Rossi and Ray Schneider - attended the 3:30 p.m. session, but Schneider left after suggesting the board hold off on a motion to separate the water and sewer departments.

Schneider, a minority board member, felt all six members, including Lou Rizzo and Joseph Gallagher, should be present for the vote and the board should have more time to discuss the matter.

Schneider asked solicitor Chris Slusser how many members are needed for a quorum, and the solicitor replied a majority.

"If I leave you no longer have a quorum?" Schneider asked, and left after the solicitor responded yes.

Schneider's action effectively ended the meeting, with the motion on the floor, said Slusser, who added he had never seen anyone do that before. He advised the remaining board members that they could continue with a discussion, but could take no action.

The three remaining members and Slusser left for a brief executive session, after which they returned and said the meeting would be recessed on the solicitor's advice and continued at 7:30 p.m., as they waited for another board member to join them.

Temborski apologized to those in attendance, and welcomed them to return later when the motion to split the water and sewer departments - and several others - carried.

Temborski explained the budget committee has held numerous meetings and worked on separate budgets for the water and sewer operations to lend more accountability, and separating the two operations on paper will allow the board to see if they can "stand on their own."

All funds for the water and sewer operations are now streamed into one account, allowing the financially stronger of the two to support the other, he said. The sewer operation, however, is supported by customers in both Conyngham and Sugarloaf Township, whereas the water operation is supported solely by borough residents, he said.

Other business

The authority board also:

- Authorized a letter notifying Sugarloaf Township that it has exceeded the capacity allotted under the 1976 sewage treatment agreement by 7,520 gallons a day. The authority requests the township rectify the situation within 30 days and discuss a new agreement, as required under the existing pact. The board previously discussed breaking the decades-old service agreement after failed attempts to negotiate a new pact.

- Requested Sugarloaf designate a person to work with the authority manager to resolve a problem with rags getting into the sewage treatment plant.

- Revised its water rules and regulations requiring customers to repair a water line break on their property within 72 hours of the authority detecting it, and allowing the authority to shut off water service if the leak not repaired within that time frame.

- Entered into a winter action and service agreement with Thomas Enterprises Inc. for snow plowing and digging for emergency repairs, requiring the firm on scene within three hours of notification of an emergency by the authority manager or board chairman.

- Put out requests for proposals on all of its insurance policies, asking for quotes by Dec. 15. Temborski noted that RFPs would be going out on snow plowing and general maintenance digging as well.

- Entered into an agreement with Dennis R. Moore & Associates for auditing services for three years. The firm will be paid $9,700 for 2012 with a 3 percent increase each year for the two remaining years. The audit will also be completed by Feb. 15, in conjunction with state guidelines, Temborski said.

- Authorized the purchase of a new truck for the water department, similar to one purchased for the sewer operation earlier this year, through the state Costars program.

kmonitz@standardspeaker.com

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